Andrew Mills/The Star-LedgerShark River Inlet in Monmouth County.SHARK RIVER -- For seven years, communities bordering the Shark River in Monmouth County have tried to find an acceptable spot they hope will one day hold silt dredged from that shallow body of water.

With each site proposed, the state Department of Environmental Protection gave them a thumbs-down, expressing concerns over wetlands or deed restrictions.

Hoping to force the state into deciding on a location for the dredged materials, Neptune Township officials today sued the DEP, alleging the agency is abandoning its responsibility to dredge a body of water vital to commerce and recreation in the area.

"We have tried to come up with alternatives, but the only answer that we keep getting is ‘no,'" said Neptune Committeeman Randy Bishop.

The township governing body this morning held a meeting at its municipal marina on the river, where it voted to file the lawsuit. After the meeting, township officials and representatives from neighboring communities held a press conference to express their concerns over the lack of dredging of the navigation channels under the state’s jurisdiction.

DEP spokeswoman Elaine Makatura said she heard about the lawsuit but could not comment because attorneys had not yet seen the complaint.

The state has approved dredging of the river, but has asked the affected communities -- Neptune Township, Neptune City, Wall, Belmar and Avon -- to find a place where the dredged materials can be stored temporarily while they are dried, a process known as dewatering. After dewatering, the material would be shipped to a landfill in Neptune Township.

The problem has been finding a "temporary" dewatering site. With 1.5 million cubic yards of silt expected to be dredged from the river over 10 years, at least one community, Wall -- where three sites have been proposed and turned down _ says it shouldn’t be the only town eyed to take the material over such a long term. The DEP has not outright rejected those locations, but it has cited wetlands and deed restrictions as reasons those spots would not be feasible, Bishop said.

Two other sites have also been deemed unsuitable.

And last month, the Monmouth County freeholders asked the county’s Board of Recreation Commissioners to consider using 11 acres of forested parkland near Neptune Township’s sewerage treatment plant. The DEP, Bishop said, again deemed it an unacceptable location because of wetlands.

That was the final straw, Bishop said of the committee’s decision to file a lawsuit.

"As of right now, to the best I can tell, we’re back to square one. After seven years we’ve come full circle," Bishop said.

He said the DEP has the authority to select a sitSHARK RIVER -- For seven years, communities bordering the Shark River in Monmouth County have tried to find an acceptable spot they hope will one day hold silt dredged from that shallow body of water.

With each site proposed, the state Department of Environmental Protection gave them a thumbs-down, expressing concerns over wetlands or deed restrictions.

Hoping to force the state into deciding on a location for the dredged materials, Neptune Township officials today sued the DEP, alleging the agency is abandoning its responsibility to dredge a body of water vital to commerce and recreation in the area.

"We have tried to come up with alternatives, but the only answer that we keep getting is ‘no,'" said Neptune Committeeman Randy Bishop.

The township governing body this morning held a meeting at its municipal marina on the river, where it voted to file the lawsuit. After the meeting, township officials and representatives from neighboring communities held a press conference to express their concerns over the lack of dredging of the navigation channels under the state’s jurisdiction.

DEP spokeswoman Elaine Makatura said she heard about the lawsuit but could not comment because attorneys had not yet seen the complaint.

The state has approved dredging of the river, but has asked the affected communities -- Neptune Township, Neptune City, Wall, Belmar and Avon -- to find a place where the dredged materials can be stored temporarily while they are dried, a process known as dewatering. After dewatering, the material would be shipped to a landfill in Neptune Township.

The problem has been finding a "temporary" dewatering site. With 1.5 million cubic yards of silt expected to be dredged from the river over 10 years, at least one community, Wall -- where three sites have been proposed and turned down _ says it shouldn’t be the only town eyed to take the material over such a long term. The DEP has not outright rejected those locations, but it has cited wetlands and deed restrictions as reasons those spots would not be feasible, Bishop said.

Two other sites have also been deemed unsuitable.

And last month, the Monmouth County freeholders asked the county’s Board of Recreation Commissioners to consider using 11 acres of forested parkland near Neptune Township’s sewerage treatment plant. The DEP, Bishop said, again deemed it an unacceptable location because of wetlands.

That was the final straw, Bishop said of the committee’s decision to file a lawsuit.

"As of right now, to the best I can tell, we’re back to square one. After seven years we’ve come full circle," Bishop said.

He said the DEP has the authority to select a site or to waive some of the issues in permitting a site, but it won’t.

Ralph Oleson of Bradley Beach said he’s a third-generation fisherman who’s seen commercial and recreational fishing on the Shark River go from thriving to barely surviving.

Last dredged in 1980, the river has some channels that are only 18 inches deep at low tide, he said.

He’s replaced three propellers on his 50-foot lobster boat, Viking, this year alone at $3,200 apiece because he’s run aground so often, he said. He’s hired divers at least 11 times to inspect the bottom of his boat after running aground, he said.

"It’s a major problem to the commercial guys and the recreational guys," he said. "In the dark it’s really rough. It’s a serious problem. It’s dangerous."

Ralph Oleson of Bradley Beach said he’s a third-generation fisherman who’s seen commercial and recreational fishing on the Shark River go from thriving to barely surviving.

Last dredged in 1980, the river has some channels that are only 18 inches deep at low tide, he said.

He’s replaced three propellers on his 50-foot lobster boat, Viking, this year alone at $3,200 apiece because he’s run aground so often, he said. He’s hired divers at least 11 times to inspect the bottom of his boat after running aground, he said.

"It’s a major problem to the commercial guys and the recreational guys," he said. "In the dark it’s really rough. It’s a serious problem. It’s dangerous."